Environmental Activism and Indigenous Issues in Cambodia: The Role of Film-Based Advocacy with and for Young People

Abstract

Over the course of 2020 a group of twelve young Cambodians were provided with a bespoke filmmaking training programme and educational support about environmental and Indigenous issues in Cambodia. The project employed an iterative participatory methodology throughout. This involved giving ownership of the creative process to the young people, while encouraging them to develop their films through dialogue with the Indigenous communities that they worked with. The central aim of the project was to produce a set of films that could be used as advocacy tools to amplify awareness of the urgent, intersecting environmental harms and issues facing Indigenous Bunong communities in Cambodia. Three films were produced that explore and document these issues, including deforestation, animal welfare, and Indigenous Bunong heritage and culture. This report reflects on and distils key lessons from the project.

Keywords: Indigenous issues; conservation; Cambodia; participatory filmmaking